1. Provide the title of your story or series and the names of the journalists involved.
Prison Health Care Series- by Julie Small
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
2. List date(s) this work was published or aired.
08/23/10; 08/24/10; 08/25/10; 08/26/10; 08/27/10
3. Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
About the Series Over a year, KPCC’s Julie Small interviewed state officials, prison medical experts, prison volunteers, inmates and their families, corrections officials and medical staff to determine if the quality of medical care in California’s prisons is, as officials claim, “fixed.” This investigation found: ” While the overall number of deaths of inmates decreased, the number of inmates whose deaths might have been prevented with better care actually increased. ” Independent reviews of medical facilities conducted by California’s inspector general for prisons reveal that California’s prisons routinely violate medical policies and protocols, leading to delays and denials of treatment for inmates. ” California officials’ repeated refusal to fund the receiver’s turnaround plan has delayed construction of sanitary medical facilities, computerization of health records and hiring independent executives to oversee medical care at prisons. ” The lack of infrastructure improvements and systemic change contributes to lapses in care for inmates that range from dangerous to deadly. Over five days in the week that started on Monday, Aug. 23, 2010, KPCC revealed its findings on-air and online.
4. Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
Yes I requested records on the inmate death analyses reports conducted by a death review committee I filed the request with the Federal Receiver’s office under California’s Public Records Act. The request was denied. Even basic information such as number of deaths at each institution was denied. I tried to get the records from attorneys for inmates at the Prison Law Office but they said they could not divulge the information. Ultimately, the attorneys gave my contact information to inmates who’d suffered near death experiences from shoddy medical care. One of them, William Furr contacted me by phone. Because of California’s prison media access laws I was only able to record him over the phone. I searched for inmate death records at county coroner offices&but discovered that without the names of inmates I could not pull those records. I also searched for court cases where inmates alleged they’d suffered from CDCR’s lack of medical care. I found Frank Lucero by that route. I also used random interactions with inmates while touring prison facilities. Not my first choice.
5. Explain types of human sources used.
I interviewed state officials, prison medical experts, prison volunteers, inmates and their families, corrections officials and medical staff to determine if the quality of medical care in California’s prisons is, as officials claim, “fixed.”
6. Results (if any).
N/A yet
7. Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
No one has challenged the report. KPCC received anonymous comments from individuals who claim to work in CDCR. One doctor reported that inmates are getting elective surgeries at his facility.
8. Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
It’s easy to get the official line. Much harder to get the inmate’s perspective. Try working through family councils and prisoner rights groups who often document medical lapses and other problems in the prisons. Look for non-profit organizations that can assist with records requests. Join IRE and check out their tip sheets. Ask other reporters who cover prisons for help. They can tell you where to look and what information you can get/what’s not accessible. Prisons are a special beat because so little of what goes on in them is subject to public scrutiny. In California it’s worse than other states because of changes to our laws that restrict media from asking to interview specific inmates.